The Marshall Pruett Podcast

MP 940: The Week In IndyCar, Sept 15, Listener Q&A

It's the first of a two-part episode of the Week In IndyCar Listener Q&A show as we dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media following the Honda Indy 200 doubleheader. 
A sampling of the items posed this week (Q&A begins at the 2m48s mark in the episode):
"Should Ferrucci have faced a harsher punishment? I thought he should've been parked because of an unsafe re-entry to the track. He realistically could've taken out the entire field, minus the two drivers in front of him."
"From the replays it looked very much like Herta ran Ferrucci off the track but Ferrucci got a penalty. Herta then proudly announces he ran him off track... how do you think that will sit control going forward? Does Ferrucci have a dump Herta-get out of jail free card?"
"I gotta say it: the release of Rossi out of his pit stall into the path of Herta during race one looked WAY worse than what got him a penalty during the 500. Thoughts?"
"It feels like early on this season there was a sense of fear that some IndyCar teams were in real danger of having serious budget issues. Now, as outlined in your first silly season article, there's a fair amount of talk of possible team expansions. What has caused such a big (positive!) change in rhetoric?"
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MP 939: The Week In Sports Cars, Sept 13, IMSA 2021 Special

It's time for The Week In Sports Cars podcast, all driven by listener Q&A, with Marshall Pruett and DailySportsCar.com's Graham Goodwin, who focus on the State of the Series announcements from IMSA for its upcoming 2021 season.
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MP 938: The Week In IndyCar, Sept 12, Listener Q&A

It's the second of a two-part episode of the Week In IndyCar Listener Q&A show as we dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media. 
A sampling of the items posed this week (Q&A begins at the 2m32s mark in the episode):
"Do you think there is any chance Dixon will not win the championship? Seems pretty likely with his lead."
"Could McLaren expand to three full time cars next year?  If so, what reality show style contest would you recommend to pick the lucky driver?  Who competes, who wins, and where does French Fry place?"
"Do you think IndyCar will be reaching out to Claire Williams? Do you think there is any chance she may be interested in IndyCar, since she's been around open wheel racing her entire life? #MePersonally I think it would be great for the sport."
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MP 937: The Week In IndyCar, Sept 10, Listener Q&A

It's the first of a two-part episode of the Week In IndyCar Listener Q&A show as we dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media. 
A sampling of the items posed this week (Q&A begins at the 3m11s mark in the episode):
"How successful do you feel the double-race format has been this season? Do you think more double-races than a normal season will be a thing next season and if so, will this mean a reduction in overall events or will the season go on beyond the Mid-September finish of recent years."
"Hi MP. Technical question. I know downforce is measured in pounds, but when we hear a downforce number given for an Indy Car, is that at a particular “standard” speed, since there would be more or less downforce depending on how fast the car is traveling?".
"If a driver only wins 8 races their entire career but they are all Indy 500 wins, are they a Hall of Famer?"
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MP 936: The Week In IndyCar, Sept 9, with Arie Luyendyk

Two-time Indy 500 winner and IndyCar race steward Arie Luyendyk returns to The Week In IndyCar show to share insights on life inside race control, handling driver conflicts, and his illustrious history as a driver spanning open-wheel and sports cars, all powered by questions submitted by fans via social media.
A sampling of the items posed this week:
"Arie, Colton Herta had some really not so nice things to say about you on the radio after Rinus Veekay passed him at WWT Raceway, how do you react to the insinuated conflict of interest? Do you contact Colton directly and talk or is there an intermediary? In race control do you automatically recuse yourself of incident review when it comes to Veekay?
"Setting the 4-lap record at Indy: Did you know that speed was in the car that day? What were the indicators - practice speed, engine tune, aero, setup? What was the driving experience like? Was it balanced & you felt ahead of it, or at any point was it at the absolute handling limit?"
"Arie, any good stories of diving with Rick Mears in his prime? What can you tell us about the Menard-powered beast you drove in 1995?"
"Arie, what seems more crazy to you now with the benefit of hindsight: Lapping IMS at 230+ mph in an open-cockpit open-wheel car, or doing fractionally lower speeds on the pre-chicanes Mulsanne Straight in an enclosed Group C Nissan prototype?"
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MP 935: The Week In Sports Cars, Sept 5 2020

It's time for The Week In Sports Cars podcast, all driven by listener Q&A, with Marshall Pruett and DailySportsCar.com's Graham Goodwin.
Discussion Topics:
IMSA (starts at 12m58s)
WEC/AsLMS/ELMS/ACO (35m03s)
General (1h08m21s)
Fun (1h19m13s)
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MP 934: The Week In IndyCar, Sept 3, Listener Q&A

It's the second of a two-part World Wide Technology Raceway doubleheader wrap-up episode of the Week In IndyCar Listener Q&A show as we dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media. 
A sampling of the items posed this week (Q&A begins at the 6m34s mark in the episode):
"Do we need to fear Pato being swept away by F1? Kid is showing amazing things and continues to impress. I listened to his radio most of the second race and his composure and maturity showed. There’s reasons why he’s P3 in the standings. Conversely Oliver is consistently in the bottom half of the race speed charts and has shown to struggle at tracks he doesn’t click with right away. Reminds me a bit of Verstappen and Albon in F1."
"Marshall, with a new IndyCar chassis likely a couple years away, if you were put in charge of the task force to design the new car, what would your priorities be? Weight reduction, aero efficiency, driveability, etc."
"I have tickets to Mid Ohio. Rumor is the race is happening in just over a week. Are my tickets going to work? What day should I be planning on showing up to the track with my camper? Should I be asking for time off work? Jay Frye says 80-90% When does the track tell the fans that they might want to plan on coming?"
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MP 933: Bill Auberlen, My Racing Life And Career

Bill Auberlen joins us for a success-themed edition of My Racing Life And Career after taking ownership of the record for all-time major sports car wins in North America, and goes well beyond those 61 victories as he shares insights on his family roots, long development period in IMSA's GTU category, and weaves through a series of fascinating stories of highs and lows--including a flirtation with IndyCar--through five decades of pro racing.
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MP 932: The Week In IndyCar, Sept 2, with James Hinchcliffe

It's the Week In IndyCar guest show with Andretti Autosport driver, NBC Sports reporter, and co-host of Off Track with Hinch & Rossi's James Hinchcliffe who joins in after the doubleheader at World wide Technology Raceway to dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media. 
A sampling of the items posed this week:
"What were your first thoughts when the producer told you to go interview Alexander Rossi after the debacle of the start in the first race?"
"James, any hope of seeing you back in a car in 2020? Andretti and Genesys have to be happy with you!"
"Hinch, your Indy 500 mask was awesome! Have you worn in it in public? I think you should get similar mask of other drivers and wear them like a hybrid Lee Corso/Leatherface while pit reporting. What says you?"
"I know James is a big fan of Jacques Villenueve, who used his handsome winnings from auto racing to have a solo music career. If James could karaoke with Mr. Villenueve, what are some songs on the playlist?"
"James- the last few years you’ve had a couple major gut punches. During both of them you handled yourself with such grace and humility. Can you share who and or what shaped your psychology and your scope on life?"
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MP 931: The Week In IndyCar, Aug 31, Listener Q&A

It's the first of a two-part World Wide Technology Raceway doubleheader wrap-up episode of the Week In IndyCar Listener Q&A show as we dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media. 
A sampling of the items posed this week (Q&A begins at the 8m31s mark in the episode):
"Michael Andretti seemed especially mad at Zach Veach after he piled into that race 1 crash. Have you heard anything about Zach’s chances of staying at Andretti? If he leaves, who gets that seat? Hinch? Conor Daly? Kevin Magnussen? Scott Tucker?"
"I saw that Dave Furst is the new VP Of Communications for IndyCar. This seems to be a bit of a revolving door position with Curt Cavin and Mike Zizzo having the job the past couple of years and Zizzo in the role for a short time. Any insight on this?"
"Do you think RHR & Colton Herta are justified in their frustrations with RVK? Is he angering other members of the paddock as well, or just the Andretti Autosport duo?"
"It seems like I notice articles on Racer.com reporting NASCAR teams failing post race tech and associated penalties issued at a much higher rate than IndyCar. Any reason to the seemingly perfect tech inspection record by IndyCar teams, is it under-reported or are penalties dished out in a hushed manner? Also, what's the best instance of bending the rules or fooling tech inspectors you ever saw?"
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MP 930: Catching Up With Jeff Zwart

The mercurial Jeff Zwart joins us for an episode of Catching Up With to discuss his Pikes Peak International Hill Climb program in a new and ultra-rare Porsche 935.
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MP 929: The Week In Sports Cars, Aug 26, with Pruett & Goodwin

It's time for The Week In Sports Cars podcast, all driven by listener Q&A, with Marshall Pruett and DailySportsCar.com's Graham Goodwin.
Discussion Topics:
IMSA (starts at 4m08s)
WEC/AsLMS/ELMS/ACO (43m11s)
General (1h24m48s)
Fun (1h44m44s)
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MP 928: The Week In IndyCar, Aug 26, with Bobby Rahal

1986 Indy 500-winning driver and 2020 Indy 500-winning team owner Bobby Rahal returns to The Week In IndyCar to answer listener questions submitted via social media on Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing's big victory at the Speedway with Takuma Sato, and opens with a story of a good luck charm that might have made a different in RLLR's rise to prominence on Sunday.
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MP 927: The Week In IndyCar, Aug 25, Listener Q&A

It's the first of a two-part Indy 500 wrap-up Week In IndyCar Listener Q&A show as we dive into a bunch of questions submitted via social media on all the happenings at the Speedway.
A sampling of the items posed this week (Q&A begins at the 5m35s mark in the episode):
"Takuma Sato entered elite company with his second win on Sunday. How should we rate and evaluate his career at IMS so far?"
"Do you think the race should have been red flagged following Spencer Pigot’s crash? #mepersonally, thankful he was Ok, but it would have taken too long to repair the end of pit lane to an acceptable standard to only run one, may be two laps under green to complete the 500 miles."
"Kind of unusual that Dixon, The King of fuel mileage, got outfoxed by Sato. Do you think Dixon was that tight on fuel that he had to let Sato take lead with the hope of catching him at the end or did CGR underestimate Sato’s ability to run his fuel mixture richer in the final stint?
"The helmet hoses seemed to be an obstacle for two drivers who were a bit urgently getting themselves out of cars on fire..."
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MP 926: Catching Up With 2020 Indy 500 Winner Takuma Sato

Takuma Sato became a two-time Indy 500 winner after using all of his savvy to conserve fuel while making big speed in the No. 30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda, and spoke with The Marshall Pruett Podcast shortly after the big 2020 victory.
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MP 925: The Justice Brothers, 75 Years At Indy

We celebrate the Justice Brothers on the 75th anniversary of the family's involvement with the Indianapolis 500. From Ed and Zeke Justice playing parts in George Robson's 1946 Indy 500 win to supporting dozens of teams with sponsorship from their automotive chemicals and lubricants business, to partnering with our podcast and three entries in the 2020 Indy 500, Ed Justice Jr shares stories of how the company has become part of the Speedway's history from the inside.
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MP 924: Inside Arie Luyendyk's 1990 Indy 500 Win

Looking back 30 years, Arie Luyendyk takes us inside the 1990 Indianapolis 500 where the Dutchman scored his first of two victories at the Speedway. And there were other milestones recorded that day in his No. 30 Shierson Racing Lola-Chevy, which he discusses, that make his first appearance on the BorgWarner trophy rather special.
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MP 923: Catching Up With Ayla Agren

Norway's Ayla Agren headed for America with dreams of racing her way up the Road To Indy and landing a ride in the NTT IndyCar Series. Despite her obvious talent, a lack of consistent sponsorship ended her time on the American open-wheel ladder following the 2017 USF2000 season. Undeterred she's continued to work at finding a way to revive her dream. Selected as one of 20 drivers for the second season of the W Series, Agren will have to wait until the championship resumes after the 2020 calendar was cancelled due to COVID-19.
Her story of humility and perseverance is an inspiring one, and with expertise to offer, she'll be at the Indy 500 serving as Ben Hanley's spotter for the No. 81 DragonSpeed Chevy entry. Agren's goal, however, is to get her career back on track, scale the Road To Indy, and join the field of 33 drivers in a future edition of the Indy 500.
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MP 922: The Day At Indy, Aug 21, with Alexander Rossi

It's the ninth installment of the Day At Indy podcast, and we have Andretti Autosport's 2016 Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi, who offers some deep insights on what kind of ambient effects will influence race day more than others, the rise in competitiveness by his team at the Speedway, and reveals the findings of his investigation into which driver(s) are guilty in the golf cart prank pulled earlier in the week.
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MP 921: The Day At Indy, Aug 20, with JR Hildebrand

It's the eighth installment of the Day At Indy podcast, and we have Dreyer & Reinbold Racing's JR Hildebrand who takes us inside a challenging start to his Indy 500, working with his primary sponsor (and fighting off the advances of a driver who recently tried to steal the deal), and closes with insights on his helmet livery of RIGHTS JUSTICE OPPORTUNITY and why he chose to carry supportive social messages into Sunday's race.
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